The Department of Agriculture (DA) is pushing a major farm-to-market road (FMR) expansion in Mindanao, noting that the buildout could unlock hundreds of billions of pesos in untapped agricultural value once long-isolated farmlands are linked to commercial centers.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said while the DA plans to regain full control of the FMR program starting 2026, preparations are underway for road projects that will cut through high-potential but chronically underutilized food production zones, including wide tracts in Sultan Kudarat and the vast Liguasan Marsh.
“Once we build it, we want to put P2 billion into a single road in Sultan Kudarat that will open up 32,000 to 35,000 hectares of new farmland. These areas aren’t being used now because there’s simply no road,” he said.
He added that Liguasan Marsh could yield an even larger boost, with up to 300,000 hectares recoverable once road networks are established.
To support these access corridors, the DA will complement the rollout with post-harvest facilities under the World Bank–funded Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP), including cold storage units, dryers, silos and improved logistics links to ports and emerging agri-ports.
Ahead of the transition, the DA has formed a dedicated FMR unit and is setting up a transparency system with time-lapse cameras, a farm-to-market portal and monitoring agreements with farmer cooperatives.
Tiu Laurel acknowledged that political pressure could complicate the rollout, noting that every mayor, congressman and senator wants a road in their district, even as the national master plan shows a 60,000-kilometer backlog and available funding for only about 2,000 kilometers next year.
Despite the constraints, the DA chief remains optimistic that Mindanao’s farm corridors will play a central role in long-term food security.
